Give it all you got with the Aggressors of Dark Kombat!

If you’re a developer looking for a cool name for your latest one-on-one punch-up in the arcades, please stop reading now. Seriously, arcade and Neo Geo title Aggressors of Dark Kombat, should have stuck with its Japanese name of GanGan!

First, Kombat. With a K. Really?

Second, Aggressors? Really?! I would have gone with Warriors, or Fighters. or pretty much any other aggressive sounding word that isn’t actually aggressive.

Third, why is the aggressive combat ‘dark‘? I’ve played the game, watched countless videos, read as much as I can about the title, and I’m still clueless about the darkness!

To understand this nonsensical name, let’s look at who developed this game, Alpha Denshi Corp. Or A.D.K. if you follow their own shorthand. So, they took their own company name as inspiration? This is from a developer that had previously created the “World Heroes” series. Sigh.

First time in the world! An astounding and realistic 3-D battle

Despite its uninspiring westernised name, Aggressors has plenty to enjoy. The ‘Kombat’ is solid, arcade-friendly button mashing with a few neat twists. Fights are only one round, but each combatant has a health bar that has several layers. Each player fills a ‘crazy’ meter as they fight, allowing the player to unleash a devastating finishing move which is a lot of fun to watch. You can also move outside of the usual 2D plane, though this particular innovation wasn’t the game-changer that it was hyped to be.

Characters in Aggressors of Dark Kombat are a mixed bunch. Of the eight fighters, only one is female, and you never see their names whilst playing! My favourite character is American Bobby “Brown Bullet” Nelson, a basketball player who fights to become famous. Obviously he does this by travelling the world, beating people up with his basketball.

Watch the ‘Bullet‘ battle though in this video:

As you’ll see and hear in the gameplay video, GanGan (as I prefer to think of it) has some really nice touches. The music is great, especially when the tempo rises during the final layer of a players health gauge. Backgrounds look great in most levels. The animation is limited, but I love the old lady walking her dog, ignoring the fight.

Weapons are a feature too, usually thrown in by the crowd, adding a touch of Final Fight to the occasion. Notice also the copious amounts of sweat falling from the fighers – not blood, but sweat!

Finally, it is worth reading the ADK “Fighters Credo”:

1. Keep quiet and just fight!
2. Attack hand and gain power points! (whatever this means)
3. No rules, get them with weapons!
4. Throw ’em! Get ’em! Break their bones!

Child of the 80's. Born, raised and living in the Cheshire countryside, England.Lover of fan art, especially if it is based on my childhood heroes from Masters of the Universe, Thundercats, Transformers and TMNT. Penchant for almost anything retro, especially movies, games and art.